Earlier this month, we came across a leaked stable One UI 8 rollout schedule for Samsung’s Galaxy devices, and a couple of days ago, Samsung released the stable One UI 8 update for the Galaxy S25 series while sharing a list of devices eligible for the update. The brand initially said these devices would get the update “later this year,” but a post on Samsung Korea’s community then revealed which devices would receive One UI 8 stable in October and November. You can check the screenshot below for those details.
One UI 8 rollout schedule for South Korea
Samsung Brazil also shared the One UI 8 rollout schedule for the Galaxy devices. It’s as follows.
Galaxy S
From September 18: Galaxy S25, Galaxy S25+, Galaxy S25 Edge, and Galaxy S25 Ultra
From September 25: Galaxy S24, Galaxy S24+, Galaxy S24 FE, and Galaxy S24 Ultra
From October 2: Galaxy S23, Galaxy S23+, Galaxy S23 FE, and Galaxy S23 Ultra
From October 6: Galaxy S22, Galaxy S22+, and Galaxy S22 Ultra
From October 16: Galaxy S21 FE
Galaxy Z
From September 25: Galaxy Z Fold6 and Galaxy Z Flip6
From October 2: Galaxy Z Fold5 and Galaxy Z Flip5
From October 6: Galaxy Z Fold4 and Galaxy Z Flip4
Galaxy A
From September 25: Galaxy A56 5G and Galaxy A36 5G
From October 2: Galaxy A55 5G, Galaxy A35 5G, Galaxy A26, Galaxy A17, and Galaxy A17 5G
From October 6: Galaxy A54 5G, Galaxy A34 5G, Galaxy A25 5G, Galaxy A16 5G, Galaxy A16, and Galaxy A15 5G
From October 16: Galaxy A73 5G, Galaxy A53 5G, Galaxy A24, Galaxy A15, Galaxy A07, Galaxy A06 5G, and Galaxy A06
From October 23: Galaxy A33 5G
Galaxy Tab
From October 2: Galaxy Tab S10, Galaxy Tab S10+, Galaxy Tab S10 Ultra, Galaxy Tab S10 FE, and Galaxy Tab S10 Lite
From October 6: Galaxy Tab S9, Galaxy Tab S9+, Galaxy Tab S9 Ultra, and Galaxy Tab S9 FE
From October 16: Galaxy Tab S8, Galaxy Tab S8+, and Galaxy Tab S8 Ultra
Needless to say, these One UI 8 rollout schedules only apply to South Korea and Brazil, and the release timeline for other countries may vary.
A new artificial intelligence model found previously undetected signals in routine heart tests that strongly predict which patients will suffer potentially deadly complications after surgery. The model significantly outperformed risk scores currently relied upon by doctors.
The federally funded work by Johns Hopkins University researchers, which turns standard and inexpensive test results into a potentially lifesaving tool, could transform decision-making and risk calculation for both patients and surgeons.
“We demonstrate that a basic electrocardiogram contains important prognostic information not identifiable by the naked eye.”
Robert D. Stevens
Division of Informatics, Integration, and Innovation at Johns Hopkins Medicine
“We demonstrate that a basic electrocardiogram contains important prognostic information not identifiable by the naked eye,” said senior author Robert D. Stevens, chief of the Division of Informatics, Integration, and Innovation at Johns Hopkins Medicine. “We can only extract it with machine learning techniques.”
The findings are published today in the British Journal of Anaesthesia.
A substantial portion of people develop life-threatening complications after major surgery. The risk scores relied upon by doctors to identify who is at risk for complications are only accurate in about 60% of cases.
Hoping to create a more accurate way to predict these health risks, the Johns Hopkins team turned to the electrocardiogram, or ECG, a standard, pre-surgical heart test widely obtained before major surgery. It’s a fast, non-invasive way to evaluate cardiac activity through electric signals, and it can signal heart disease.
But ECG signals also pick up on other, more subtle physiological information, Stevens said, and the Hopkins team suspected they might find a treasure trove of rich, predictive data—if AI could help them see it.
“The ECG contains a lot of really interesting information not just about the heart but about the cardiovascular system,” Stevens said. “Inflammation, the endocrine system, metabolism, fluids, electrolytes—all of these factors shape the morphology of the ECG. If we could get a really big dataset of ECG results and analyze it with deep learning, we reasoned we could get valuable information not currently available to clinicians.”
Image caption: Stevens’ team used artificial intelligence to extract previously undetected signals in these routine heart tests that strongly predict which patients will suffer potentially deadly complications after surgery
Image credit: Will Kirk / Johns Hopkins University
The team analyzed preoperative ECG data from 37,000 patients who had surgery at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston.
The team trained two AI models to identify patients likely to have a heart attack, a stroke, or die within 30 days after their surgery. One model was trained on just ECG data. The other, which the team called a “fusion” model, combined the ECG information with more details from patient medical records such as age, gender, and existing medical conditions.
The ECG-only model predicted complications better than current risk scores, but the fusion model was even better, able to predict which patients would suffer post-surgical complications with 85% accuracy.
“Surprising that we can take this routine diagnostic, this 10 seconds worth of data, and predict really well if someone will die after surgery,” said lead author Carl Harris, a PhD student in biomedical engineering. “We have a really meaningful finding that can can improve the assessment of surgical risk.”
The team also developed a method to explain which ECG features might be associated with a heart attack or a stroke after an operation.
“You can imagine if you’re undergoing major surgery, instead of just having your ECG put in your records where no one will look at it, it’s run thru a model and you get a risk assessment and can talk with your doctor about the risks and benefits of surgery,” Stevens said. “It’s a transformative step forward in how we assess risk for patients.”
Next the team will further test the model on datasets from more patients. They would also like to test the model prospectively with patients about to undergo surgery.
The team would also like to determine what other information might be extracted from ECG results through AI.
Authors, all from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine and the Whiting School of Engineering, include Anway Pimpalkar, Ataes Aggarwal, Jiyuan Yang, Xiaojian Chen, Samuel Schmidgall, Sampath Rapuri, Joseph L. Greenstein, and Casey O. Taylor.
The work was supported by National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship DGE2139757.
Netflix India is giving audiences “an adventurous ride into the world of Indian cinema” with its newest series, “The Ba***ds Of Bollywood.”
Created and directed by Bollywood megastar Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan, under Khan’s Red Chillies Entertainment, the series follows Aasmaan Singh (Lakshya), “an ambitious newcomer with dreams as big as the silver screen,” as he and his friends try to “navigate the larger-than-life yet uncertain world of Bollywood.”
As Aasmaan “steps into the world of glitter and grit,” he soon finds “that dreams come at a price, especially when ambition and ego collide,” says Netflix about the series, adding it explores the dual nature of the Indian film industry “where one world is shaped by the ease and familiarity of insiders, while the other is navigated with grit and resilience by those entering from the outside.”
“The series blends self-aware humor with a high-stakes narrative and promises a host of unforgettable cameos, blockbuster thrills, and an adventurous ride into the world of Indian cinema,” Netflix adds.
Here is what to know about “The Ba***ds Of Bollywood,” including the release date, cast and trailer.
Shah Rukh Khan: What to know about the actor and criticism around his Met Gala interview
When does ‘The Ba***ds Of Bollywood’ premiere?
“The Ba***ds Of Bollywood” will premiere on Netflix on Thursday, Sept. 18. New content on the streaming platform usually drops at 3 a.m. ET/midnight PT.
Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.
How to watch ‘The Ba***ds Of Bollywood’
All seven episodes of “The Ba***ds Of Bollywood” will be available to stream on Netflix starting Thursday, Sept. 18.
‘The Ba***ds Of Bollywood’ cast
Cast members for “The Ba***ds Of Bollywood,” according to Netflix, include:
Lakshya as Aasman Singh
Anya Singh as Sanya Ahmed
Bobby Deol as Ajay Talwar
Sahher Bambba as Karishma Talwar
Raghav Juyal as Parvaiz
Manoj Pahwa as Avtar
Mona Singh as Neeta Singh
Vijayant Kohli as Rajat Singh
Manish Chaudhari as Freddy Sodawallah
Rajat Bedi as Jaraj Saxena
Gautami Kapoor
‘The Ba***ds Of Bollywood’ cameos
Audiences can expect to see cameos from some of Bollywood’s biggest names, some of whom were also spotted in the trailer, including:
Shah Rukh Khan, actor/producer
Salman Khan, actor/producer
Aamir Khan, actor/producer
Karan Johar, director/producer
Disha Patani, actor
Sara Ali Khan, actor
Ranveer Singh, actor
SS Rajamouli, filmmaker
Badshah, rapper
Arjun Kapoor, actor
Watch the ‘The Ba***ds Of Bollywood’ trailer
Netflix dropped the trailer for “The Ba***ds Of Bollywood” on Sept. 8.
Will ‘The Ba***ds Of Bollywood’ have a Season 2?
Netflix has not yet made any announcements regarding Season 2 of “The Ba***ds Of Bollywood”.
Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at sshafiq@gannett.com and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7.
British pharmaceutical firm GSK has pledged to invest $30bn (£22bn) in research and manufacturing in the US over the next five years.
Announced at the start of US President Donald Trump’s visit to the UK, the money will fund the development of next-generation factories, artificial intelligence (AI) and research labs in the US, said GSK.
British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said the investment was a “powerful example” of collaboration between the countries and would create new jobs and boost drug development.
The move comes as drugmakers face pressure from the Trump administration to move production to the US.
GSK said in a statement that $1.2bn would be allocated to build a new factory in Pennsylvania to develop medicines for respiratory diseases and cancer. Construction is planned to start next year.
The money will also fund new AI and digital technology tools across GSK’s five American manufacturing sites, including those in North Carolina and Maryland.
The rest of the $30bn investment will support GSK’s supply chain and drug research efforts, the company said.
Chief executive Emma Walmsley said GSK plans to keep investing in its UK manufacturing base and will continue spending over £1.5bn yearly on research and development from the country.
GSK is the latest pharma firm to have either reduced spending in the UK or diverted it to the US, which has threatened tariffs as steep as 250% on pharmaceutical imports.
Threats to the sector have caused major disruption, with drugmakers pausing or cancelling nearly £2bn in planned investments in Britain this year.
Last week, US pharmaceutical company Merck – known as MSD in Europe – announced it would scrap its £1bn London research centre. Shortly after, AstraZeneca halted its planned £200m expansion of its research facilities in Cambridge.
ISLAMABAD, Sep 18 (APP): The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) on Thursday warned of widespread rain with thunderstorms across several districts in Punjab over the next two days, increasing the risk of river swelling in vulnerable areas due to rising water levels in upper catchments.
The National Emergencies Operation Centre (NEOC) has predicted heavy rain and thunderstorms in Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Gujrat, Gujranwala, and Lahore divisions.
Intermittent showers are likely in Peshawar, Kohat, Bannu, Sargodha, Faisalabad, and Zhob divisions, with a heightened risk of increased water flow in the upper reaches of rivers due to sustained rainfall.
In response, NDMA has directed all relevant institutions to take proactive measures to manage potential emergency situations.
Heavy rainfall is expected to trigger a significant surge in hill torrent flows, posing additional risks to low-lying and flood-prone regions.
Authorities are closely monitoring developments and implementing timely interventions to mitigate hazards and ensure public safety.
NDMA has advised citizens to avoid crossing swollen streams, bridges, and flooded roads. Residents in high-risk areas are urged to stay informed through official announcements on television and mobile alerts.
The public is also encouraged to download the NDMA Disaster Alert App for real-time updates on weather conditions and potential threats.
As of Thursday, Guddu Barrage is experiencing a medium-level flow of 500,000 cusecs. Sukkur Barrage has reached a high flood level with a flow of 571,000 cusecs, while Kotri Barrage remains at a medium-level flow but may face a potential flood situation.
Illustration of two black holes orbiting each other. Eventually the black holes will merge, producing gravitational waves; thanks to LIGO, astronomers can now detect those waves .
Victor de Schwanberg, Science Photo Library/Getty Images
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Victor de Schwanberg, Science Photo Library/Getty Images
For centuries, the primary way that astronomers studied outer space was through sight. But just ten years ago, scientists successfully established a way to ‘listen’ to our cosmos – detecting gravitational waves created by huge cosmic events that took place billions of light years away.
But what do those gravitational waves tell us? What events are they commonly caused by? And what could they tell us about our universe? Short Wave host Regina Barber and NPR science correspondent Nell Greenfieldboyce dive in.
Interested in more space science? Email us your question at shortwave@npr.org.
Listen to every episode of Short Wave sponsor-free and support our work at NPR by signing up for Short Wave+ at plus.npr.org/shortwave.
Listen to Short Wave on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.
This episode was produced by Hannah Chinn and was edited by Amina Khan. Nell Greenfieldboyce and Tyler Jones checked the facts. Jimmy Keeley was the audio engineer.
“Welding burns you, I get burnt every day,” sculptor Ehtisham Jadoon told me from his Islamabad workshop. He spoke about marble floors cracking under the weight of his multi-tonne sculptures and hours spent tearing off bits of metal from his own skin, but zoom out a little and it all starts to make sense. An ibex with rust-clad horns, a tyrannosaurus with gears for guts and a lion with a mane of steel cables — these are just some of the forms Jadoon has waiting for anyone who ventures to his ‘gallery,’ located just off GT Road.
This wasn’t planned, the artist told me. “I didn’t know what my passion was, and everyone has a different perspective on what [passion] means. I spent 35 years of my life without knowing who I am.”
Finding his voice
Jadoon explained he’s been looking for an outlet all his life; having tried martial arts and mountain biking, he found his calling in working with his hands. “I later understood that [all my pent-up] energy can be channelled into creating forms,” he said. He started without any formal experience in the arts, having previously worked with his sister in her textile business and spending some time in construction.
When asked about the challenges of taking up metalwork as an art form, Jadoon was quick to share just how hazardous it really is. “Almost once every two weeks, I get some injury or the other,” the sculptor said, adding that this didn’t include the many burns he receives every day. “That’s how intense welding is; it’s an intense, difficult process, but I enjoy it. My art may be difficult, but there’s a novelty to it.”
Inspired by the Bulgarian Ibex, this sculpture is made with old car parts, reclaimed tools and steel sheets.
Reminiscing about his first welder — who ended up teaching him the ropes — Jadoon said he needed silence to find his voice. He told me how communicating with his workman, who had hearing loss, led him to find not only a passion for the craft, but also a cause to work towards — uplifting people he worked with.
“Art gives people a voice and these sculptures aren’t just my voice; they’re the voices of everyone who’s worked with me on them,” the artist told Images. “I speak from my heart when I say that I respect [these people]; they work long shifts, without cover and rest, so my success is theirs as well.“
The creative process
Jadoon said his process starts and ends in his head. For most of his ideas, he sees something and tries to picture it in metal. He then tries to recreate that image with scrap he finds. “I’ve always been interested in the strange and pretty things I’d see around me.”
After an idea comes to mind, the artist said he jumps straight into the work. “I don’t sketch these sculptures out and plan everything down to the last nail, I just get up and start welding.” The process, he said, takes him an average of 2,000 to 3,000 hours per project. Each piece, he told me, is a reflection of his “mental and emotional state” at the time he created it.
Jadoon said his work was “bigger and more complex” than it appears on screen. His sculpture of a tree, for example, “has a 25-foot radius and looks slightly different at every angle you view it from; there are 7,000 to 8,000 leaves and 10,000 to 15,000 branches, all made of metal”. The T-rex has skin made of individually cut scales; the artist said he only painted half of the statue to reflect the duality of his emotions as he worked on the project.
Jadoon used individually cut metal pieces as scales to give his dinosaur a reptilian skin.
Spending 12 to 14 hours a day in his workshop, Jadoon is a bit of a workaholic. He told me he hasn’t taken a single day off in over a year. “When you’re passionate, driven in your work, it’s never a chore,” he explained. When he isn’t at his shop, a lot of his time at home is spent thinking about mistakes he made in his work during the day.
“I make a mental note to correct those mistakes and I start the next day with those corrections. Every sculpture of mine, I’ve made it, disassembled it, and remade it again till I was satisfied with it. This helps me learn. The lion sculpture, I remade [it] twice, I remade the dinosaur four times because I felt it could be improved.”
When I asked about the scale of his work, Jadoon had just one word to describe his sculptures — “huge”.
“The dinosaur is 22 feet in length, 12 feet in height and weighs about two tonnes; balancing all that on two legs took some amount of engineering. The rhino sculpture is so heavy, four to five people need to push it every time we move it around…even my workshop floor has broken from the weight of these sculptures.”
Inspiration behind his work
The sculptor explained he often found inspiration for his work from nature, especially up north, where he often goes to find peace. A native of Abbottabad, Jadoon said he’s seen his hometown change drastically, losing much of the natural beauty he fondly remembers from his childhood to urbanisation. This pushes him to try and beautify places. He also draws inspiration from movies and television shows, such as the dinosaur, which he said was inspired by Jurassic Park.
Maximus, Jadoon’s rendition of the iconic T-rex from Jurassic Park stands 12 feet tall and weighs around two tonnes.
In the same vein, Jadoon told me his work had a special focus on sustainability. “The thing about my materials is that they only get more beautiful with time. If you go to an old scrapyard and just take a look around, you’ll see the most amazing forms made out of metal…My goal is to educate people on how these discarded forms can have value too.”
Jadoon said his reasons for doing all this have changed slightly in the time he’s been working. “I didn’t really market these sculptures initially; they were a passion project. I do now, and you can see my inventory [of artworks] on my social media.” He told me the proceeds from his art transform lives, allowing him to provide jobs to local people and develop their skills; this benefits both their communities and the country. “I think people need to understand that art can be hope for people,” he said
A die-hard patriot, Jadoon said at the end of the day, he works for Pakistan. He explained how there is an urgent need to create and display art in public spaces around the country, especially airports, which he said are often used to display a nation’s creative spirit. When asked about his favourite sculpture, he said he had a special space in his heart for a markhor he’d made, “It’s our national animal…a majestic creature, it represents the Pakistani people, strong, courageous, hard working.”
Mr T, Jadoon’s larger than life sculpture of a lion, was remade twice before it reached its present form.
Hope for the future
Adding on to his desire to help beautify Pakistan, Jadoon shared his vision for what he hopes would be his pièce de résistance: a fire-breathing beast in one of the country’s most beautiful spots.
“I want you to imagine it, a 70-foot dragon spewing flames, opposite the Passu Cones. Flanked by a river on one side and a valley on the other. I want the whole world to see that, it’ll definitely be one of the most impressive sculptures in Pakistan,” he told Images.
Telling me about future exhibitions, the artist said his workshop in Islamabad was open to anyone who wants to visit; he regularly hosts people who come to admire his work, especially children with special needs. He has an exhibition coming up at Islamabad’s Centaurus Mall from September 22 to 25 and is in talks for one in Karachi later in the year. His ambitions, however, are bigger than just some displays for the rich and famous.
Jadoon said he wants to install his art in underdeveloped areas. “I want people who like my art to visit these difficult places and help the people who live there. I think my art can shed some light on their condition.” He told me how people living in these areas just need an opportunity to succeed, the rest they are more than able to handle for themselves.
The artist with his art.
The artist said there’s just one lesson he’d like to share with others, especially with young people: “life is unpredictable”. He advised the youth to stop wasting away in front of screens and do something in the world. “Utilise yourselves, create something.” A life well lived is one that makes a difference, no matter how small, he said, adding that the value of our achievements is derived from the positive impact they create.
Mourinho began his managerial career with Benfica in 2000 but took charge of only 10 games and left after a dispute with the club president.
He then made his name with Porto between 2002 and 2004, winning six trophies – including the Champions League in 2003-04.
Since leaving his homeland in 2004, Mourinho has managed Chelsea, Inter Milan, Real Madrid, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur, Roma and Fenerbahce.
Should Benfica appoint Mourinho, he would face Chelsea in the Champions League at Stamford Bridge on 30 September.
Benfica also travel to Newcastle United and host Real Madrid later in the league phase of the competition.
Benfica are sixth in the Primeira Liga, five points adrift of leaders Porto, but have a game in hand.
They finished second in the top flight last season – two points behind Sporting – under former Wolves boss Lage.
The move to part company with Lage coincides with Benfica preparing for their presidential election on 25 October.
Joao Noronha Lopes, favourite to win the election, has his sights set on Manchester United manager Ruben Amorim and was at Etihad Stadium on Sunday to watch Portuguese.
Costa said the decision to make a managerial change is not motivated by his attempt to get re-elected.
“I’m not here to save any positions,” Costa said.
“I haven’t even gone anywhere to campaign yet, because my goal, as president of Benfica, is to ensure the best future for Benfica, regardless of what happens in the elections.
“And this decision-making has to do solely and exclusively with Benfica’s sporting season, and to avoid jeopardising Benfica’s sporting season. I’ve never put my interests ahead of Benfica’s, and I’m not going to do so now.”
Israel announces ‘temporary’ route for residents to flee Gaza City
Israel announced on Wednesday a “temporary” new route for residents to flee Gaza City, as it launched an intense ground offensive after massive bombardment of the Palestinian territory’s main city.
The Israeli military “announces the opening of a temporary transportation route via Salah al-Din street”, spokesperson Avichay Adraee said in a statement, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP). Adraee added that “the route will be open for 48 hours only”.
On Tuesday, Israel unleashed its long-threatened ground offensive in Gaza City, sending tanks and remote-controlled armoured cars packed with explosives into its streets, in defiance of international criticism and the findings of a UN commission that it was committing genocide in the Palestinian territory. Israel’sforeign ministry rejected the commission’s report as “distorted and false”.
Israel’s military said that it expects its Gaza City offensive to take “several months” to complete, marking the first timeline it has given for its plan to take control of the territory’s largest population centre.
Displaced Palestinians flee northern Gaza along the coastal road toward the south, as Israel announced an expanded operation in Gaza City. Photograph: Abdel Kareem Hana/AP
Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said the goals of the offensive were “defeating the enemy and evacuating the population”, omitting any mention of the freeing of the remaining Israeli hostages, which was been a constantly stated war aim until now. Hostage families and their supporters protested near Netanyahu’s Jerusalem residence on Tuesday, accusing him of abandoning their loved ones.
The UN secretary general, António Guterres, said it was clear that Israel had no interest in a peaceful outcome.
“Israel is determined to go up to the end and [is] not open to a serious negotiation for a ceasefire, with dramatic consequences from Israel’s point of view,” Guterres said.
More on this story in a moment. Here are other recent developments:
The health ministry in Gaza reported on Tuesday afternoon that 59 people had been killed and 386 wounded in the previous 24 hours, bringing the official toll of Palestinians from nearly two years of war to almost 65,000. The actual number is feared to be significantly higher.
On Wednesday, the European Commission is due to present a plan to member states to impose “measures to pressure the Israeli government to change course over the war in Gaza”, said the EU foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas.“Israel’s ground offensive in Gaza will make an already desperate situation even worse,” Kallas said, adding: “It will mean more death, more destruction [and] more displacement.”
Iranian authorities hanged a man on Wednesday after convicting him of spying for Israel’s the Mossad intelligence agency since 2022, the judiciary said. “Babak Shahbazi … was executed by hanging this morning following due legal process and the confirmation of his sentence by the supreme court,” the judiciary’s Mizan Online news website said.
SBS has indicated it will not follow the lead of a growing number of European Union countries and boycott next year’s Eurovision song contest if Israel is permitted to compete. The decision on Israel’s inclusion will be made by the contest’s governing body in December, but SBS told the Guardian on Tuesday it intended to participate in the 2026 event in Vienna, regardless of December’s decision.
Sally Rooney, Deborah Levy, Nobel laureate Annie Ernaux and Pulitzer winner Viet Thanh Nguyen are among 20 authors urging French president Emmanuel Macron to resume a “lifeline” programme for evacuating Palestinian writers, scholars and artists from Gaza. The Pause programme for writers and artists in emergency situations, as well as a student evacuation programme, were abruptly suspended by the French government at the beginning of August over a Palestinian student’s allegedly antisemitic online remarks.
Key events
Aid groups call for stronger efforts to stop Israel’s Gaza City offensive
A coalition of leading aid groups on Wednesday urged the international community to take stronger measures to stop Israel’s offensive on Gaza City. It also highlighted findings by a commission of UN experts that found Israel was committing genocide in Gaza.
According to the Associated Press (AP), the statement read:
What we are witnessing in Gaza is not only an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe, but what the UN commission of inquiry has now concluded is a genocide.
States must use every available political, economic, and legal tool at their disposal to intervene. Rhetoric and half measures are not enough. This moment demands decisive action.
The message was signed by leaders of more than 20 aid organisations operating in Gaza, including the Norwegian Refugee Council, Anera and Save the Children.
Malak A Tantesh
The bombardment of Gaza City has been growing louder and more deadly for weeks, but in the early hours of Tuesday it felt like an earthquake that would never stop.
“Even when the bombings are not right next to us, we can clearly hear them, and the ground shakes beneath us with the intensity of the explosions,” said Fatima al-Zahra Sahweil, 40.
Sahweil, a media researcher, said the dead and wounded from the night’s barrage had been taken to al-Shifa medical complex, where she heard the situation was “catastrophic”.
She had lost track of the latest news, however, as she tried to make the near-impossible decision of what to do to best protect her four children.
The Rashid coast road, the Israeli-designated “escape” route to the south, was jammed with the exhausted and desperate. Anyway, the cost of a ride was too high.
Displaced Palestinians flee northern Gaza along the coastal road toward the south on Tuesday. Photograph: Abdel Kareem Hana/AP
“On top of that, I don’t own a tent to give us shelter, and they are too expensive to buy. I would not be able to take all of the belongings and supplies I have already bought several times before,” Sahweil said. “Then there is the suffering we would face in searching for water and the lack of empty spaces to stay in. So if I leave, I would simply be going into the unknown.”
Like more than 90% of people in Gaza, the family has been displaced by the war. An overwhelming majority have been forced to move numerous times. Sahweil and her family have already been displaced 19 times.
Now, with the launch of a ground offensive, the Israeli army is calling on the estimated 1 million people sheltering in Gaza City to move south once more. But Sahweil and her family, and many others, have been to the south before and are aware it is no haven from violence.
Israel announces ‘temporary’ route for residents to flee Gaza City
Israel announced on Wednesday a “temporary” new route for residents to flee Gaza City, as it launched an intense ground offensive after massive bombardment of the Palestinian territory’s main city.
The Israeli military “announces the opening of a temporary transportation route via Salah al-Din street”, spokesperson Avichay Adraee said in a statement, according to Agence France-Presse (AFP). Adraee added that “the route will be open for 48 hours only”.
On Tuesday, Israel unleashed its long-threatened ground offensive in Gaza City, sending tanks and remote-controlled armoured cars packed with explosives into its streets, in defiance of international criticism and the findings of a UN commission that it was committing genocide in the Palestinian territory. Israel’sforeign ministry rejected the commission’s report as “distorted and false”.
Israel’s military said that it expects its Gaza City offensive to take “several months” to complete, marking the first timeline it has given for its plan to take control of the territory’s largest population centre.
Displaced Palestinians flee northern Gaza along the coastal road toward the south, as Israel announced an expanded operation in Gaza City. Photograph: Abdel Kareem Hana/AP
Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said the goals of the offensive were “defeating the enemy and evacuating the population”, omitting any mention of the freeing of the remaining Israeli hostages, which was been a constantly stated war aim until now. Hostage families and their supporters protested near Netanyahu’s Jerusalem residence on Tuesday, accusing him of abandoning their loved ones.
The UN secretary general, António Guterres, said it was clear that Israel had no interest in a peaceful outcome.
“Israel is determined to go up to the end and [is] not open to a serious negotiation for a ceasefire, with dramatic consequences from Israel’s point of view,” Guterres said.
More on this story in a moment. Here are other recent developments:
The health ministry in Gaza reported on Tuesday afternoon that 59 people had been killed and 386 wounded in the previous 24 hours, bringing the official toll of Palestinians from nearly two years of war to almost 65,000. The actual number is feared to be significantly higher.
On Wednesday, the European Commission is due to present a plan to member states to impose “measures to pressure the Israeli government to change course over the war in Gaza”, said the EU foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas.“Israel’s ground offensive in Gaza will make an already desperate situation even worse,” Kallas said, adding: “It will mean more death, more destruction [and] more displacement.”
Iranian authorities hanged a man on Wednesday after convicting him of spying for Israel’s the Mossad intelligence agency since 2022, the judiciary said. “Babak Shahbazi … was executed by hanging this morning following due legal process and the confirmation of his sentence by the supreme court,” the judiciary’s Mizan Online news website said.
SBS has indicated it will not follow the lead of a growing number of European Union countries and boycott next year’s Eurovision song contest if Israel is permitted to compete. The decision on Israel’s inclusion will be made by the contest’s governing body in December, but SBS told the Guardian on Tuesday it intended to participate in the 2026 event in Vienna, regardless of December’s decision.
Sally Rooney, Deborah Levy, Nobel laureate Annie Ernaux and Pulitzer winner Viet Thanh Nguyen are among 20 authors urging French president Emmanuel Macron to resume a “lifeline” programme for evacuating Palestinian writers, scholars and artists from Gaza. The Pause programme for writers and artists in emergency situations, as well as a student evacuation programme, were abruptly suspended by the French government at the beginning of August over a Palestinian student’s allegedly antisemitic online remarks.
American tennis star Taylor Townsend has apologised after coming under fire for comments she made on social media about Chinese food.
The 29-year-old who is in the Chinese city of Shenzhen for the Billie Jean Cups final, had posted videos on Instagram in which she talked about dishes that featured frogs, turtles and sea cucumber, saying: “This is the craziest thing I’ve ever seen… Imma have to talk to HR… [eating] turtle and bullfrog is WILD.”
She quickly faced backlash on both English and Chinese social media platforms.
Ms Townsend, who is the world’s top-ranked doubles player, later apologised saying: “There’s no excuse, there’s no words and, for me, I will be better.”
“I understand that I am so privileged as a professional athlete to be able to travel all around the world and experience cultural differences, which is one of the things I love so much about what I do,” she said in a video posted to Instagram on Wednesday, adding that she had “the most amazing experience” at the tournament.
Townsend had a day earlier taken to Instagram to share her reaction to some of the food she saw being served at a restaurant, including dishes like braised soft-shell turtle with fish maw and dry pot bullfrog.
These are considered traditional delicacies in China, particularly in the south.
“These people are literally killing frogs… bullfrogs. Aren’t those poisonous? Aren’t those the ones that be giving you warts and boils and stuff? And turtles?… All in all I’d give this like a solid two out of 10 so far, because this is crazy,” Ms Townsend said then.
She also posted another video where she appeared to be at a buffet with her teammate Hailey Baptiste, with the two making fun of a sea cucumber dish.
She was quickly called out on social media.
“Won’t defend Taylor here, clearly offensive and shocks a lack of understanding [that] there are different cultures other than USA,” said one user on X.
“It’s really offensive to mock other people’s cultural food,” said another.
Chinese social media quickly caught light of her comments, and the hashtag “American tennis player publicly insults Chinese food” started trending.
“When you go overseas, respect the local customs and culture. You can choose not to eat it. There is no need to belittle our food,” said one comment on Weibo.
The latest backlash comes less than a month after Ms Townsend got into a heated confrontation with her Latvian rival Jelena Ostapenko in which the latter said she had “no class” and “no education”.
Ms Ostapenko apologised but denied being racist, saying her comments were in reference to tennis etiquette. “But I understand how the words used could have offended many people beyond the tennis court,” she wrote in an Instagram post.
Ms Townsend and her teammates are due to face Kazakhstan for the quarter finals on Thursday.
